Waiver Wire Targets - May 10
Jon sneaks in a handful of players to consider on waivers this weekend
Blake is coming back with a post here tomorrow, but I can’t help myself! I’m fishing for some deep league targets, and here’s what I’m coming up with.
I wrote this baby up in like 35 minutes, rapid-fire style. But something is better than nothing, and honestly, I’m feeling pretty good about how it turned out.
One other thing. I get really confused about what “week” is technically is in the fantasy season. So I’ve dropped that naming convention. Now I’m just going to put the date of when the post comes out in the title rather than picking a fantasy week.
Starting Pitcher
Matthew Liberatore, St. Louis Cardinals (33%)
Maybe it’s too late, but at 33% I think I can still call him a deep league target. The K-BB% remains at 20%, and the guy is throwing strike after strike. He has a 32% Ball%, which is very good, and it comes with an above-average SwStr% at 12.7%. The slider has been fantastic (21.3% SwStr%, 54% Strike%, 28% Ball%), and the four-seamer is good enough to make him a very competitive big league pitcher. Things are looking legit for the St. Louis lefty.
Gunnar Hoglund, Athletics (24%)
It’s just two starts, but the 13.3% SwStr% is something we like to see. So is the depth of arsenal (five pitches above 10% usage), the fastball variations (throws a four seamer and sinker), and the strong four-seam control (49% Strike%, 33% Ball%). I think he’ll have some bad outings (42% GB% so far and he’s pretty dependent on the slower four-seamer at 43% usage), but the SP waiver wire is thin right now, and Hoglund has at least given us a reason to watch his next couple of starts.
Hunter Dobbins, Boston Red Sox
Wrote about him in the daily notes on Saturday, so check that out if you’re interested.
Catcher
Agustin Ramirez, Miami Marlins (26%)
In a super sharp league, this guy was added shortly after his call-up, and not dropped during his cold streak that second week. The underlying numbers are fantastic. I’ll just do the lazy thing and show you the Statcast page for this one.
Edgar Quero, Chicago White Sox (2%)
Base knocks, baby! He is hitting .293/.397/.345 with a .295 xBA. That’s because he makes a ton of contact (83% Contact%, 86% in the zone), and hits a bunch of line drives (36%). The EVs aren’t awful either, with a 103.3 EV90. He hasn’t homered yet, but that should be at least a small part of his game as we move forward.
First Base
Ty France, Minnesota Twins (9%)
He’s now slashing .277/.344/.397 for the Twins. The strikeout rate has always been low, but it stays low now (14%). The barrel rate is up there around 12%, and he’s lifting the ball enough to have a trio of homers. I don’t really think those homers will come in bunches, but the 105.3 EV90 shows that he can swing the bat pretty hard, and the batting average is nice between those rare homers.